UK transport secretary Grant Shapps announced a £2 billion ($2.5 billion) package to put cycling and walking “at the heart of” Britain’s post-coronavirus transportation plan. The idea is to reduce crowding on public transport and gridlock on roads.
While Shapps said the measures would contribute to a greener and healthier recovery in the wake of the pandemic, he also noted that with a two-meter social distancing rule, there is only capacity for one in 10 passengers in many parts of the public transport network.
“Moving beyond Covid will be a gradual process, not a single leap to freedom, so when we do emerge the world will seem quite different,” he said in a daily Downing Street press briefing. More cycling and walking presents a “health opportunity” for people to become fitter and improve their physical and mental health, he said.